Skip to Content
Streetsblog USA home
Streetsblog USA home
Log In
Bicycling

Chattanooga’s Custom-Built De-Icer for Protected Bike Lanes Is Adorable

Photo and video: City of Chattanooga.
pfb logo 100x22

Michael Andersen blogs for The Green Lane Project, a PeopleForBikes program that helps U.S. cities build better bike lanes to create low-stress streets.

As we wrote the other day, clearing snow and ice from protected bike lanes isn't hard. It just requires some effort.

Fortunately for Chattanooga, Tennessee, that's no problem. This winter, to keep their protected bike lane on Broad Street rideable through the snow, road crews there set up a Kawasaki Mule to trickle just the right amount of brine into the space between curb and planters:

As other cities have discovered, early de-icing treatments can be especially useful on protected bike lanes, because unlike cars, bikes don't tend to splash liquid de-icers away when they pass through. And early de-icing is especially important, because bike tires don't break thin layers of ice as they form. If you don't de-ice a protected bike lane early in a big snow event, the lane could be out of commission for a day or more.

Tony Boyd, deputy director for Chattanooga's operations team, said Wednesday that this was the city's first attempt to create a machine for de-icing bike lanes and it's working well so far.

"That Kawasaki Mule is used downtown to do a lot of our herbicide applications," he said. "We just picked up a polypropalene tank from the co-op and had our shop mount it on a palette so we can take it in and out of the unit when we want to. ... We built a PVC pipe in the shape of an upside-down T and then we just drilled the pipe in a way that it disperses the brine across the lane. That's the way we do it with all our larger trucks too."

Boyd credited street maintenance manager Ricky Colston with the design.

"It works out pretty well," he said.

You can follow The Green Lane Project on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook or sign up for its weekly news digest about protected bike lanes.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog USA

Friday Video: Are We All Living in a ‘Carspiracy’?

How does "car-brain" shape the way we think about the world — even in relatively bike-friendly countries like the U.K.?

July 26, 2024

Friday’s Headlines Share and Share Alike

Bikeshares, and e-bikes and scooters generally, are becoming more popular. That's led to more injuries, highlighting the need for better infrastructure.

July 26, 2024

What the Heck is Going on With the California E-Bike Incentive Program?

The program's launch has been delayed for two years, and currently "there is no specific timeline" for it. Plus the administrator, Pedal Ahead, is getting dragged, but details are vague.

July 26, 2024

Talking Headways Podcast: Have Cities Run Out of Land?

Chris Redfearn of USC and Anthony Orlando of Cal Poly Pomona on why "pro-business" Texas housing markets are catching up to "pro-regulation" California and what it might mean for future city growth.

July 25, 2024

The Paris Plan for Olympic Traffic? Build More Bike Lanes

A push to make Paris fully bikable for the Olympics is already paying dividends long before the opening ceremonies.

July 25, 2024
See all posts